Chargers' Antonio Gates: Foot injury could keep him out more games

San Diego Chargers TE Antonio Gates is not sure he'll be able to return to the team's lineup on Sunday.

Gates had to sit out the team's win in Week 9 -- his first missed game since 2005 -- because of a plantar fascia injury in his right foot.

"It's a tear. It's not a tough-man, grind-it-out thing. I tore it," Gates told the AP. "It's got to heal. That's a big part of me running and cutting."

Gates has nine TDs this season in his first eight games. He said he's making "baby steps" progress.

Other foot injuries slowed him and kept him out of practice earlier in the season. But Gates said this injury is different.

"For what I do, my feet and my legs are my two big assets," Gates said. "I'd prefer not to hurt the team. That's the decision I'm going to have to make and the coaches are going to have to decide. Am I actually beneficial at this percentage? I don't know. Who's to say?"

To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

About Nate Davis

Nate Davis is a reporter, blogger and editor who's been at USA TODAY since 2000. He has covered the NFL since 2005. No, he did not play quarterback for Ball State. Davis' succession of our esteemed colleague Sean Leahy at The Huddle is considered a Brady-for-Bledsoe swap by most "insiders."More about Nate